GACC Announcement No.18, 2013 on Tax Relief for Encouraged Investment Projects

On February 16, 2013, China NDRC authority issued the Directive Catalog For Industrial Restructuring (2011 Version) (Revision) through its No. 21 Decree and required implementation of this Directive Catalog from May 1, 2013.

Relevant matters are hereby announced for customs practices:

1. As of May 1, 2013, China Customs shall conduct exemption from import duties but levy of import value-added tax (VAT) regarding the compliant self-use equipment imported for domestic investment projects that are encouraged in the Directive Catalog aforesaid, but except the non-exempted goods as otherwise regulated, in accordance with State Council taxation notice (GuoFa〔1997〕no. 37), GACC Announcement No. 103 of 2008, and other relevant regulations.

2. Upon the implementation of the Directive Catalog aforesaid, the "project industrial policy approval item" in a Project Confirmation shall have the code of "N", for example, in the Directive Catalog, the encouraged Item 1, Class 1 shall be described as "medium/low-yield field comprehensive treatment and high/stable-yields basic farmland development (N0101)" and the encouraged Item 4, Class 7 shall be described as "oil/gas associated resources utilization (N0704)".

3. As regards the domestic investment projects formally approved before May 1, 2013 (excluded), any of the encouraged projects may still be exempted from the import duties, but the project operators shall apply before May 1, 2014 to the customs for the exemption by submitting compliant Project Confirmations (the "project industrial policy approval item" shall use original words and codes); where being overdue, the customs may not accept such application.

As regards the encouraged domestic investment projects formally approved before May 1, 2013 (excluded), where the investment authorities issue the Project Confirmations as per the Directive Catalog aforesaid with the "project industrial policy approval item" using the "N" code, the customs may accept the application for tax reliefs.

4. As regards such encouraged projects that are under construction, the operators may apply to the authorities for issuing Project Confirmations;

Based on the Project Confirmations, the tax reliefs as regulated by Article 1 hereof may be applied to the self-use equipment and related technologies and components that are imported for the under-construction projects;

However, any tax already paid may not be returned.


Annex: Directive Catalog for Industrial Restructuring (2011 Version) (Revision) (omitted)



The General Administration of Customs of China (GACC)

April 2, 2013